Even if you aren't buying as gifts, though, you'll want to read thru this list of Kindle book bargains I've turned up. Most are Agency priced books, so will be the same price at other stores, such as Kobobooks.com
There are also a few sales/promos going on:
- Fictionwise has a 60% off coupon, merryxmas2010, valid thru December 26, good for multi-format, non-DRM books, as well as EReader DRM'd books, unlimited use.
- Kobo
has two coupon codes valid today: Holiday50 for 50% off one non-Agency book and iOS4, for 30% off one non-Agency book. Also, check your email today, as they should have mailed out their Christmas bonus coupons, to those who made purchases over the past 12 days (although I don't see mine, yet).
The Zero Game ($1.99), by Brad MeltzerBook Description
The New York Times bestselling author of The Millionaires and The First Counsel returns to Wash-ington, D.C., with the story of an insider's game that turns deadly. Matthew Mercer and Harris Sandler are best friends who have plum jobs as senior staffers to well-respected congressmen. But after a decade in Washington, idealism has faded to disillusionment, and they're bored. Then one of them finds out about the clandestine Zero Game. It starts out as good fun-a simple wager between friends. But when someone close to them ends up dead, Harris and Matthew realize the game is far more sinister than they ever imagined-and that they're about to be the game's next victims. On the run, they turn to the only person they can trust: a 16-year-old Senate page who can move around the Capitol undetected. As a ruthless killer creeps closer, this idealistic page not only holds the key to saving their lives, but is also determined to redeem them in the process. Come play The Zero Game-you can bet your life on it.
The President's Assassin ($2.99), by Brian Haig Book Description
With just three days to prevent the assassination of the President, Army lawyer Sean Drummond races the clock in the high-stakes countdown of his career.
Army lawyer Sean Drummond's new posting is to the Office of Special Projects, a CIA cell that handles the most dangerous threats. When the White House Chief of Staff is found brutally murdered, there's a note beside him promising more victims--including the President. Sean leaps into action, teaming up with a beautiful colleague to try to stop the assassin. As the killer stalks the campaign trail, apparently driven by a $500 million bounty on the President's head, all arrows point to a member of the White House security detail who's gone missing. Only after a dramatic hostage rescue that culminates in an intense shootout does Sean realize law enforcement's horrible miscalculation--and what must be done to set things right.
Shadowland ($3.99), by Meg Cabot, the first in her The Mediator series.Book Description
Suze is a mediator -- a liaison between the living and the dead. In other words, she sees dead people. And they won't leave her alone until she helps them resolve their unfinished business with the living. But Jesse, the hot ghost haunting her bedroom, doesn't seem to need her help. Which is a relief, because Suze has just moved to sunny California and plans to start fresh, with trips to the mall instead of the cemetery, and surfing instead of spectral visitations.
But the very first day at her new school, Suze realizes it's not that easy. There's a ghost with revenge on her mind ... and Suze happens to be in the way.
A Perfect Darkness ($1.99), by Jaime RushBook Description
They live ordinary lives, but they are extraordinary. They are the Offspring, children of a mysterious experiment gone awry—and they are in terrible danger.
A sexy stranger awakens Amy Shane in the dead of night. Lucas Vanderwyck barely has time to whisper a few words before three men burst into her bedroom and drag him away. But what Lucas reveals shatters Amy's safe little world forever.
Lucas and Amy share a psychic gift—a gift that could put them in mortal danger. And as they share night after night of savage passion, as a shadowy government conspiracy tracks their every move, they will fight to save each other. But only with their powers of second sight can they escape the terror of a perfect darkness.
The Unwanted: A Memoir of Childhood ($2.99), by Kien NguyenBook Description
Saigon fell to the Viet Cong on April 30, 1975. Kien Nguyen watched the last U.S. Army helicopter leave without him, without his brother, without his mother, without his grandparents. Left to a nightmarish existence in a violated & decimated country, Kien was more at risk than most because of his odd blond hair & his light eyes - because he was Amerasian. He was the most unwanted. Told with stark & poetic brilliance, this is a story of survival & hope, a moving & personal record of a tumultuous & important piece of history.
Abraham's Children: Race, Identity, and the DNA of the Chosen People ($1.99), by Jon EntineBook Description
Could our sense of who we are really turn on a sliver of DNA? In our multiethnic world, questions of individual identity are becoming increasingly unclear. Now in ABRAHAM'S CHILDREN bestselling author Jon Entine vividly brings to life the profound human implications of the Age of Genetics while illuminating one of today's most controversial topics: the connection between genetics and who we are, and specifically the question "Who is a Jew?"
Entine weaves a fascinating narrative, using breakthroughs in genetic genealogy to reconstruct the Jewish biblical tradition of the chosen people and the hereditary Israelite priestly caste of Cohanim. Synagogues in the mountains of India and China and Catholic churches with a Jewish identity in New Mexico and Colorado provide different patterns of connection within the tangled history of the Jewish diaspora. Legendary accounts of the Hebrew lineage of Ethiopian tribesmen, the building of Africa's Great Zimbabwe fortress, and even the so-called Lost Tribes are reexamined in light of advanced DNA technology. Entine also reveals the shared ancestry of Israelites and Christians.
As people from across the world discover their Israelite roots, their riveting stories unveil exciting new approaches to defining one's identity. Not least, Entine addresses possible connections between DNA and Jewish intelligence and the controversial notion that Jews are a "race apart." ABRAHAM'S CHILDREN is a compelling reinterpretation of biblical history and a challenging and exciting illustration of the promise and power of genetic research.
In Search of Adam ($1.01), by Caroline SmailesBook Description
Motherless, rootless and unprotected, Jude Williams' childhood is fractured by the horror and experience of sexual abuse, forcing her to exist somewhere and nowhere in-between childhood and adulthood. Caught within the limitations of her own language and trapped within a family secret, Jude becomes the consequence of her mother's tragedy. As she moves through the 1980s, Jude's life is buffeted by choice and destiny and she collects experiences that layer her personal tragedy and plunge her into the darkest of worlds.
A Dawn Like Thunder: The True Story of Torpedo Squadron Eight ($2.99), by Robert J. MrazekBook Description
One of the great untold stories of World War II finally comes to light in this thrilling account of Torpedo Squadron Eight and their heroic efforts in helping an outmatched U.S. fleet win critical victories at Midway and Guadalcanal. These 35 American men--many flying outmoded aircraft--changed the course of history, going on to become the war's most decorated naval air squadron, while suffering the heaviest losses in U.S. naval aviation history.
Mrazek paints moving portraits of the men in the squadron, and exposes a shocking cover-up that cost many lives. Filled with thrilling scenes of battle, betrayal, and sacrifice, A DAWN LIKE THUNDER is destined to become a classic in the literature of World War II.
The Silver Pigs: A Marcus Didius Falco Mystery ($2.99), by Lindsey DavisBook Description
When Marcus Didius Falco, a Roman "informer" who has a nose for trouble that's sharper than most, encounters Sosia Camillina in the Forum, he senses immediately all is not right with the pretty girl. She confesses to him that she is fleeing for her life, and Falco makes the rash decision to rescue her--a decision he will come to regret. For Sosia bears a heavy burden: as heavy as a pile of stolen Imperial ingots, in fact. Matters just get more complicated when Falco meets Helena Justina, a Senator's daughter who is connected to the very same traitors he has sworn to expose. Soon Falco finds himself swept from the perilous back alleys of Ancient Rome to the silver mines of distant Britain--and up against a cabal of traitors with blood on their hands and no compunction whatsoever to do away with a snooping plebe like Falco….
Boys R Us and These Boots Are Made for Stalking, by Lisi Harrison, the eleventh and twelfth in her The Clique series, are both $1.99.Book Description
Massie Block: After disbanding the Pretty Committee, Massie takes charge like Visa, forming OCD's hawtest clique yet: Massie And Crew. Even though money can't buy love, it can buy new friends . . . or at least model-actresses who will act like your besties until you get real ones. Lights, camera, MACtion!
Alicia Rivera: Hearts her new role as alpha of the Soul-M8s, BOCD's first ever boy-girl clique. But when the boys head back to the newly renovated Briarwood Academy, will the remaining Soul-M8s become 4Squares?
Dylan Marvil: Is happy times ten to finally have a crush who's crushing back, especially since they luh-v all the same things: marshmallows, lip-kissing, and chugging Red Bull. Buuuuuuuuurrrrrrrp!
Kristen Gregory: Scored three goals on the soccer field last week-and Massie's crush . . . which earned her an ejection from her ex-BFF's heart. Can Massie forgive and forget, or is Kristen out of the game forever?
Claire Lyons: Has declared herself neutral in the battle of the cliques. But dividing her time among Massie, the Soul-M8s, and Cam has left her stretched thinner than extra-small Spanx. Can she get her friends to reunite, or will she be forced to pick a side once and for all?
The Clique . . . the only thing harder than getting in is staying in.
A Total Waste of Makeup ($2.99), by Kim GruenenfelderBook Description
Charlize "Charlie" Edwards certainly knows, in theory, what it takes to lead a successful and happy life. She owns a nice house in Silverlake, LA's trendiest neighborhood. She has glamorous and loyal friends who accompany her to the hottest clubs in town. And she works as the personal assistant to Drew Stanton, Hollywood's sexiest movie star. But she's also turning 30, chronically single, and faced with serving as maid of honor at her younger sister's wedding. Charlie finds herself struggling to juggle the chaos of wedding planning (while wondering if she'll ever wear the white dress herself), her all-consuming job for lunatic boss Stanton, and a serious crush on Jordan, a photographer on the set of Drew's latest feature--a man who might actually return her feelings. A page-turner from start to finish, A Total Waste of Makeup puts a fresh face on women's fiction.
Chosen by Desire ($1.99), by Kate PerryBook Description
Carrie Woods just can't resist temptation. To solve an ancient mystery, she "borrows" a precious, legend-cursed scroll from a Chinese monastery. But with the scroll comes danger: bizarre powers, life-threatening accidents, and, most frightening of all, one sexy Guardian's icy-hot gaze.
Maximillian Prescott is all too happy to strip this innocent-eyed thief of her secrets and the scroll, yet he's determined to fight the undeniable attraction pulling them together. But Max isn't Carrie's only pursuer, and there's just one way to keep the scroll safe. This adventurous blonde and brooding Guardian must dare to join forces and bare their souls to each other . . . before their enemies take not only the scroll but Carrie's life.
A Gentle Giving ($2.99), by Dorothy Garlock Book Description
Willa Hammer has nothing left after narrowly escaping the lynch mob that unjustly hanged her foster father except her dog, her faith, and the protection of a secretive family. She joins their wagon train heading West, never realizing she is traveling to the wilds of Bighorn Mountain, where a rundown ranch and the arms of an untamed, hardened cowboy await her.
Cause of Death ($3.99), by Patricia Cornwell, the seventh in her Kay Scarpetta series.Book Description
This New Year's Eve marks the end of a life-and the beginning of a nightmare for Kay Scarpetta. The mysterious death of diver Ted Eddings, an investigative reporter, and the murder of a morgue assistant driving her car lead medical examiner Kay Scarpetta, her niece, and police captain Pete Marino on the trail of a deadly supremacist group.
From the New York Times bestselling author of From Potter's Field and The Body Farm comes a mesmerizing new thriller that takes Dr. Kay Scarpetta into the very vortex of evil--far beyond anything she has heretofore encountered as Chief Medical Examiner. Together with her niece Lucy and police captain Pete Marino, Scarpetta follows the scents of death and violence to the heart of sinister deakness.
Seventh Son ($2.99), by Orson Scott Card, the first in his (young adult) The Tales of Alvin Maker series. I'm already about a third of the way thru this one.Book Description
From the author of Ender’s Game, an unforgettable story about young Alvin Maker: the seventh son of a seventh son. Born into an alternative frontier America where life is hard and folk magic is real, Alvin is gifted with the power. He must learn to use his gift wisely. But dark forces are arrayed against Alvin, and only a young girl with second sight can protect him.
Includes an excerpt of Orson Scott Card's new novel, THE LOST GATE!
Thanks for the Memories, with Bonus Material ($1.99), by Cecelia Ahern, is a pre-order. You can get a sample from the previous edition ($9.99), just be sure not to purchase the wrong one when you are done reading it.Book Description
... this charming novel ... explores what happens when "what if" becomes a reality for two strangers whose lives are at a crossroads. This special e-book edition also includes an excerpt of Cecelia's latest novel, The Book of Tomorrow.
How can you know someone you've never met? That's the question haunting Joyce Conway these days. Recovering from a terrible accident and with her marriage in pieces, Joyce is suddenly plagued by an overwhelming sense of dÉjÀ vu that makes her feel as if the life she's living is not her own. During the day she has vivid memories of things she's never seen—such as cobblestoned Parisian streets she's never visited—and at night she dreams of a little girl she's sure she's never met. Joyce is convinced she's lost her mind . . . until a series of coincidences leads her on a journey to meet the one person who may hold the answer she needs.
Someone's life could be depending on you right now . . . . That's the pitch that finally persuades Justin Hitchcock to donate blood—the first thing to come straight from his heart in a long time.
Restless and lonely, Justin chased his ex-wife and daughter from Chicago to London, and now he's in Dublin, guest-lecturing to bored college students. When he receives a basket of muffins with a thank-you note attached, he's sure someone's playing a joke on him, but then the presents keep coming. Intrigued, Justin is determined to solve the mystery—a quest that will change his life forever.
Thanks for the Memories is a heartwarming story of hope, love, and second chances. If you love this, don't miss The Book of Tomorrow, available in bookstores and in e-book format on January 25, 2011.
The First Patient ($2.99), by Michael Palmer, is another one I've started on.Book Description
From the blockbuster, New York Times bestselling author comes a high-concept, high-octane thriller at the crossroads of presidential politics and cutting-edge medicine. . . .
Gabe Singleton and Andrew Stoddard were roommates at the Naval Academy in Annapolis years ago. Today, Gabe is a country doctor and his friend Andrew has gone from war hero to governor to President of the United States. One day, while the United States is embroiled in a bitter presidential election campaign, Marine One lands on Gabe’s Wyoming ranch, and President Stoddard delivers a disturbing revelation and a startling request. His personal physician has suddenly and mysteriously disappeared, and he desperately needs Gabe to take the man’s place. Despite serious misgivings, Gabe agrees to come to Washington. It is not until he is ensconced in the White House medical office that Gabe realizes there is strong evidence that the President is going insane. Facing a crisis of conscience—as President Stoddard’s physician, he has the power to invoke the Twenty-fifth Amendment to transfer presidential power to the Vice President—Gabe uncovers increasing evidence that his friend’s condition may not be due to natural causes.
Who? Why? And how? The President’s life is at stake. A small-town doctor suddenly finds himself in the most powerful position on earth, and the safety of the world is in jeopardy. Gabe Singleton must find the answers, and the clock is ticking....
With Michael Palmer’s trademark medical details, and steeped in meticulous political insider knowledge, The First Patient is an unforgettable story of suspense.
The Bridge ($2.99), by John Skipp & Craig SpectorBook Description
When the great storm comes, the good life ends. And hell on Earth begins. For 100 years we’ve been tossing our toxic waste over our shoulders. No more. This morning, while we slept, something woke up. It’s virulent. Malign. Intelligent. Ambitious. It’s in our food, our water, our air. It’s inside our bodies themselves. And it’s not leaving. We are.
Stay tuned, I'm working on Part II and hope to get it finished sometime today (or maybe in the wee hours of tomorrow).
